May 27, 2013 - fly home

Tegel Airport in Berlin is old and inefficient. It has no space for the security procedures that are part of flying today. Ken was hauled away to another area to have his myriad electronics more thoroughly searched. His questioner spoke no English and I stood at the end of the security area for a long time wondering if I would ever see my husband again. The new airport is scheduled to open June 1 after many lengthy delays. Our cab driver estimated it could be two years before they work out all the bugs. He said, "if this was being built in...

Apr 22, 2013 - leaving already

We've only been home about three weeks after spending the winter enjoy various southwestern deserts. We had visions of golf, bike riding and tennis outdoors. The motor home is filthy after the long drive home and we thought we would get it clean before we leave again. But the weather has been most uncooperative. The first week home it was so cold, we had to leave the motorhome furnace running to prevent the pipes freezing. We haven't had it on since, but we've flirted with the 32º mark a number of nights. I looked forward to seeing spring...

Apr 1, 2013 - throw it at the wall

and see what sticks. That's pretty much what the repair tech at HWH did today. When Ken pushed the button the jacks did not work. When the junior tech pushed the button they did not work. When the senior tech pushed the button they did work. Makes diagnosis a real challenge. Since we have already replaced about 75% of the gizmos that transmit the signal from the button to the jack mechanism, they went ahead and replaced the other 25%. They worked on things for about three hours and did not charge us a thing. When we left the jacks were...

Dec 27, 2012 - and away we go

With apologies to all the small children who worried that Santa's sleigh couldn't get to their house without snow, we just have to say that the lack of the white stuff in our area has been a huge plus. Getting ready to leave without snow is SO much easier. As we dismantled the outdoor Christmas lighting display and wound the electric cords up, we didn't miss the cold, wetness that we usually have to deal with during this task at all. We also didn't miss shoveling the snow from around the motor home in the lot where we store it when we're...

Sep 21, 2012 - final thoughts

A second washer/dryer had been installed with a $300 tank of diesel thrown in for our trouble. Ken has replaced the azimuth motor for the satellite dish and it is rising and aiming itself without any intervention from him. We have discovered that some of the tar spots on the front bumper of the almost brand new Jeep are dings despite our faithful use of the stone guard. So once that has been touched up, we will be back in the good condition we were in when we left for the Alaska adventure in May. We have read and learned from the blogs of...

Sep 14, 2012 - really home

The last day of driving was as they all should be - the wind was at our back, the sun was out and the road construction was winding down. There is something to be said for traveling in the fall when road crews are almost finished repairing the damage from last winter. Unpacking is much easier when it's not raining or snowing and the temperature is mild. Unpacking is also much easier than preparing to leave. We just brought it all in and can put it away at a leisurely pace. No worries about what we've forgotten. We still have a lot of food...

May 18, 2012 - doing it right this time

After a relaxed six weeks at home, we are ready to head out on another great adventure. The time went fast. We came through routine doctor & dentist appointments with flying colors. We even convinced the friendly folks at our drug insurance company that they can give us six months of medication up front and we won’t OD on drugs for high cholesterol. But the motor home check up was more challenging. We paused at Coach Care in Normal IL on our way home from wintering in the Gulf of Mexico and discovered there was much more to do than the...

Apr 6, 2012 - oh my

It was so cold in our parking lot campground we had to run the furnace and there was so much frost on the windshield we couldn't see to drive. If we had an ice scraper along, we couldn't find it buried under the bikes, golf bags, tennis racquets and lawn chairs. The morning at the repair facility started well. We passed the 160 point check with flying colors and all fluids and filters were replaced well before lunch time. Then they tackled the A/C problem. The simple fixes were tried first and didn't do it. So a replacement condenser is...

Dec 27, 2011 - packing marathon

In the years that we have been lucky enough to head to warm climes after the holidays, this is the first time that we have not had snow and ice to contend with. While Christmas fans were disappointed that the holiday was not white here, we are delighted that we can load the motor home without having to remove boots every time we go in and out. And we can open the storage bays without crashing into snow banks. While it's far from tropical, the engine turns over much better when it's 40º rather than -4º. Tomorrow we won't have to use a hair...

Dec 6, 2011 - home already

As soon as we boarded the plane last night we were struck by how old the flight crew was. On the flight to Iguazzu Falls the flight attendants were striking young women, but the folks on United looked like they could have been my classmates. With all that experience they were more than competent and we were plied with food and drink from the moment we hit our seats in Business Class. The warm nuts seemed especially decadent. Table linens and real flatware are not our usual economy class experience. But a ten hour flight is a bear, even in...

Dec 1, 2011 - magazine article post script

Now that the December issue of Budget Travel is on the newsstand and we can see the two page spread featuring the cruising tips we gave their reporter and tiny photo of our faces, we are left as mystified by this whole experience as we were eight months ago when it all began. Unlike some other occasions in our professional lives, we were delighted to see that the article included only what we really said and the comments were accurate and complete. Once you have been misquoted by the local media, you can get a little gun shy, but the...

Oct 18, 2011 - weigh that suitcase

The autumn has been beautiful; it really is our best season. But the tree limbs are almost bare and that's the signal that it's time to head out. Thanks to some well timed business class flights and Southwest Airlines, this will be the first trip where we will have to pay for an extra suitcase on United - $70 for one international flight. While we've made our peace with crowded seats and getting nothing to eat, paying for the luggage on such a long trip still feels unfair. It's been a real challenge to pack for this adventure with all the...